


Her Laugh

by merida_mrd



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-15
Updated: 2018-03-15
Packaged: 2019-03-31 21:49:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13984005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merida_mrd/pseuds/merida_mrd
Summary: He looked at the little skinny body beside him. His fingers went to dark hairs on her head.  Her hair was so short, it couldn’t even spread on the pillow they shared. He missed the days when it was long, when there were braids on her head. Always messy and wild... It would be all over the pillow if it were long. He would wake up to her hair, a curtain of dark hair on his eyes, even in his mouth. He stroked her tendrils lightly and carefully got up form the bed.





	Her Laugh

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a while ago. It was there I just corrected and added a few things today. Arya didn't go to Braavos here. She went to Jon. The timeline of the events can be blurry here. I just wanted to see Arya hiding as a boy among men and Jon near her as the Lord Commander. So please humor me.:))

Jon rose from the bed. Sleep decided to stay away from him tonight.

He looked at the little skinny body beside him. His fingers went to dark hairs on her head. Her hair was so short, it couldn’t even spread on the pillow they shared. He missed the days when it was long, when there were braids on her head. Always messy and wild... It would be all over the pillow if it were long. He would wake up to her hair, a curtain of dark hair on his eyes, even in his mouth. He stroked her tendrils lightly and carefully got up form the bed.

He pulled one of the two chairs in the room, sat in front of the bed, to watch her. 

The day she came to him was pure happiness. They told him there was a boy, named Lyam, at the door. One of his brothers talked to him. He said the boy told him he was from Winterfell, his father was one of Lord Stark’s men. He was suspicious at first, he didn’t remember a boy named Lyam. His brother said the boy was waiting outside of the castle gate and wanted him to know he was using the pointy end like he told him.

Jon didn’t know how he ran to the gate. He remembers just saying “Arya” over and over. For anyone who was looking he was silent but inside he was shouting. When he was outside she was there. She was grown but still a child. Her hair was short, she was inside boy clothes. She was his little sister.  
He remebers saying “Arya” like a prayer. It was a prayer. The one he said to find peace and love in the darkest moments at the Wall. The one he said with the fear for that litle force of nature disappearing from his life forever. But she was in front of him, eyes watery like his. He was going to ran her and take her in his arms but she raised her little hand and stopped him. 

“Not here Jon. I am Lyam remember?”

He took her a place away from eyes. They hugged there. He kissed her hair, breathed her in. She rained kisses on his face. The kisses he missed with every fiber of his being…  
Arya was afraid. Afraid of everyone…. She told him they couldn’t trust northerners. They betrayed Robb. Lannisters were looking for her, one of men here could betray them. It was safe to hide her identity.

They only told Maester Aemon her true identity. He didn’t even tell Sam. Maestor Aemon advised them to keep her away from making a false oath to Watch. For others the boy was a son of a man who is close to his family. He told them his family was killed by Boltons and he had nowhere to go. They told everyone the boy’s uncle was away but he would come and take him. 

It was luck he was the Lord Commander now. He made Lyam his steward. There was a room connected to his bedroom. He was using that room as a study room. He ordered his men to bring a bed there. He said the boy wasn’t a man of the Watch, he were under his care, so he mustn’t stay with men of the Watch. It was again his luck he didn’t choose a steward yet. He was going to choose Olly. But with Arya here there was no other choice. As far as everyone knew Lyam was his steward and sleeping in his study room so he could watch him and he can attend his duty as a steward better and wouldn’t be underfoot. 

When he said the word “underfoot” in front of his men Arya smiled, he would smile too but he restrained himself. 

Arya was the same brave girl though. She said she wouldn’t mind sleeping with other men. As if he could let it. He couldn’t let her sleep among these men. Some of them were rapers, but every man here was dangerous. 

The bed in the study room was empty now. It had been a month since she came. She didn’t use that bed much. They were locking the doors every night. She was crawling under the blankets of his bed after that. This night was no exception. 

He kept on watching her. 

She was breathing silently. Her short dark locks fell on her heart shaped face. How anyone can mistake her as a boy, he can’t understand. He guessed in the day lights with her high energy, with her speed in everything, with her different self-confidence and of course with her smartness she can trick everyone in her play of an active, energetic but delicate built little boy posture. But when she was sleeping there is no trick. There is no way one man can mistake her for a boy if they can look at her now.  
Jon felt anger rising in him. He won’t let anyone near her. They can’t look at her. Thanks Gods she is a child. She is eleven years old now. After two or three years there will be changes in her body. How can he hide her then? These men will notice her, surely they will.

Today some of them sensed her. Even if they couldn’t acknowledge it, their body sensed it. 

She was sparring with one of the brothers. He was close to his age. He came here because he stole from the owner of the small shop he worked. He was a good lad. He was one of the lads Jon gave permission Arya to talk with. He told her every rapers here, told her to stay away from them. 

While watching her with a practising sword sparring with one of his men, he didn’t like it. It was dangerous. He was giving her lessons. Wasn’t it enough? That feeling was because of his fear surely. 

Despite his fear, that restless feeling he was feeling, he couldn’t help but smiled after a while. He watched her movements, her attacks, her thrusts and retreats… His little eager, smart student… He could see she was practising the lessons he gave her. She was always a quick learner. With his training she will be better most of the men here. He felt pride filling his heart while watching her spar.

She made a quick movement with her foot and the lad stumbled over her foot. He found himself on the ground, Arya poıinting the sword to his head. 

“I won” she said with a triumphant smile and retreated quickly. She was doing what he said. She wasn’t getting too close to anyone. 

“My good girl. Don’t get close anyone little sister. Always be careful.” He said in his mind. 

And then it happened. 

The lad was confused and grouching. Arya laughed at him. A laugh which filled the whole yard…. His heart rejoiced with it. Her voice filled his every pore in his body. Just like when they were in Winterfell. When she laughed and it would erase all the aches in his heart… all the heartbreaks he felt that day would disappear with her voice…

He wouldn’t notice anyone else if Edd didn’t talk. “When was the last time we heard a laugh like that here?” 

When he looked around, he saw more men looking at the yard. Looking at Arya, watching and listening her laugh. 

He only remembers calling her with a hard voice. “Ary...Lyam!” he shouted. 

It took a few seconds for her to remember she was Lyam. 

He told her to do his work, he lied about a pair of dirty boots waiting for him to clean. Edd was looking at him when he turned. He said it is his responsibility to keep the boy in line. 

His heart broke again when he thinks about it. She was laughing and he made her stop. Because even laughs were dangerous here. Especially laughs like hers. She suffered all of that pains and could still laugh. He was the one who stopped it this time.

One day he will make her laugh and tell her to laugh freely. One day he will give her a place free and safe so that she can fill it with her laughs. 

Arya assumed he was angry because she were sparring one of his men and she could hurt herself. So she talked about how she is careful all the time, how he musn’t worry. He couldn’t tell her the real reason. How could he? He will watch her closely, he will advise her to be more careful. He won‘t let her from his sight. But he can’t tell her the real reason. He can’t say her “Don’t laugh like that here Arya.”

Jon got up from the chair and sat on the bed, near his little sister. He took one of her hands resting on the pillows. He put her little hand between his hands. 

Watching her breathing is one of the most beautiful things he was doing these days. It gives him strenght, a feeling of being whole and strong. He feels he is not alone. He feels a peace noone and nothing can give. 

He looked the small hand in his hand and the skinny pale arm following it. There were some bruises. Some were from sword lessons. Needle was in the room, he gave her a different sword yesterday. It was heavy. Her little fingers were bruised because of it. He lifted her tiny fingers and leaned his head. He kissed the bruised tiny fingers one by one. There were also some cuts on her hand and arm. They were from her activities. Some because of her energetic active body, some because of her duty here. He told her to not to tire herself but she said it must be believable if she is a steward. 

He stroked the cuts. He was going to lean to kiss a cut on her arm.

A sleepy soft voice stopped him. 

“Jon?” 

He looked at her, her hand still in his hand.

“Yes, it is me little sister.” His voice was soft too, like a whisper. 

Her beautiful grey eyes were open, she managed to focus on him, getting free from the hold of sleep.

“Didn’t you sleep?”

“I woke up.” He lied.

“Something happened?”

There was worry in her voice now. Jon didn’t want that. He wants her voice and face filled with peace and joy. 

“Nothing happened. I just couldn’t go back to sleep.”

Her little hand in his hand held him. She squeezed his hand and pulled him to herself lightly.

“Come to bed Jon. I can see you are worrying yourself again. Don’t be afraid. We are together. I won’t let anyone harm us. I will be more careful.”

He held her little hand tightly. With his free hand he stroked the locks on her face. She is awake now so he can stroke them like he wants to. He leaned and kissed her forehead.

She was holding his hand tightly too. Like she was afraid he would go.

He pulled the blanket on her back. He just climbed the bed in one motion, placed himself behind her. Her back was on his chest. Then he pulled blanket over them and hugged her from behind, feeling her back on his chest, warm and solid.

“As long as we are together, there is nothing to fear. Go back to sleep little sister.”

He kissed her hair and closed his eyes. He tried to sleep picturing her face and voice filled with joy coming from her laugh.

There was a smile on his lips when finally he slept.


End file.
